Press Release

Winners to be announced exclusively on ESPN Radio and presented by Majestic Athletic and 2K Sports

MLBPA Press Release

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Major League Baseball players have chosen finalists for their highest honors, the Players Choice Awards, in which the players themselves recognize excellence on and off the field. Winners of the 2010 Players Choice Awards will be announced exclusively in a series of segments featuring interviews with each winning player on ESPN Radio beginning Monday, Oct. 25, and continuing through Friday, Oct. 29. The 2010 Players Choice Awards, presented by Majestic Athletic and 2K Sports, benefit the Major League Baseball Players Trust.

Finalists for Player of the Year are Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado Rockies), Josh Hamilton (Texas Rangers) and Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds). Gonzalez led all National Leaguers in batting average (.336), hits (197) and total bases (351), while finishing second in RBI (117) and fourth in homers (34). Hamilton led the Rangers to the American League West and was tops in the AL in batting average (.359) and slugging percentage (.633), finishing fourth in total bases (328) and fifth in home runs (32). Votto helped lead the Reds to the NL Central Division crown and led all National Leaguers in on-base percentage (.424) and slugging percentage (.600), and finished second in batting average (.324) and third in homers (37), RBI (113) and total bases (328).

Leading the voting for the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award, given annually to the player who inspires others to higher levels of achievement by his on-field performances and contributions to his community, are Torii Hunter (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim), Brandon Inge (Detroit Tigers) and Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado Rockies). Hunter created the Torii Hunter Project, which partners with the Little League Urban Initiative to stop the disappearance of baseball diamonds from America's inner cities. Inge is a champion for the C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor, Mich., and often invites the children he's visited to watch Tigers games as his special guests. Tulowitzki is a national spokesperson for the Play Sun Smart program, in which he promotes the importance of skin-cancer prevention for the American Academy of Dermatology.

The Players Choice Awards annually honor the outstanding player, rookie, pitcher and comeback player in each league, while the Player of the Year and Man of the Year awards bestow top honors without regard to league. Balloting for the Players Choice Awards was conducted in September under the supervision of accounting firm KPMG.

2010 Players Choice Award winners in all categories will designate charities to receive grants totaling $260,000 from the Major League Baseball Players Trust, the charitable foundation created and run by the players themselves. The Players Trust raises funds and attention for issues affecting the needy and promotes community involvement. Since 1992, the Players Trust has recognized the outstanding on-field and off-field performances of Players Choice Awards winners by contributing $3 million to charities around the world. For additional information, please visit www.MLBPLAYERS.com or visit the Players Trust channel on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/MLBPlayersTrust.

Below please find the complete list of 2010 Players Choice Awards finalists as well as the ESPN Radio broadcast schedule for the awards announcements. Go to www.ESPNRadio.com to find an ESPN Radio station near you or to listen live.

The Major League Baseball Players Association (www.MLBPLAYERS.com) is the collective bargaining representative for all professional baseball players of the 30 Major League Baseball teams and serves as the exclusive group licensing agent for commercial and licensing activities involving active Major League Baseball players. On behalf of its members, it operates the Players Choice licensing program and Players Choice Awards, which benefit the needy through the Major League Baseball Players Trust, a charitable foundation established and run entirely by Major League baseball players.

About Majestic Athletic
Majestic Athletic is a subsidiary of VF Imagewear. Majestic designs, markets and manufactures athletic team uniforms, performance apparel, outerwear and licensed athletic wear. The company is licensed by the Major League Baseball Players Association and Major League Baseball. Majestic currently holds on-field uniform rights for all 30 Major League Baseball clubs.